Stay away from this pill: Urgent warning about deadly blue LEGO-shaped ecstasy tablets with three times the average dose of MDMA
- High-dose ‘Lego’-shaped pills have double or even triple the normal MDMA dose
- MDMA causes the body to overheat, sometimes leading to coma and death
- Hot weather forecast for New Year’s Eve will make it even more dangerous
- May also cause heart problems, paranoia, severe agitation, seizures and fits
The NSW Health Department has issued an urgent warning to New Year’s Eve revelers over potentially deadly ecstasy pills shaped like blue Lego blocks.
A number of the high-dose MDMA pills were seized in northern New South Wales, prompting the emergency warning ahead of New Year’s Eve dance parties.
MDMA causes the body to overheat, sometimes leading to organ failure, coma and death – with hot weather increasing the risk.
The light-blue ‘Lego’ shaped pills seized in Northern NSW have prompted urgent health warnings ahead of New Year’s Eve as they contain dangerously high doses of MDMA
It can also cause severe agitation, paranoia, seizures and heart problems.
The NSW Poisons Information Centre said the light-blue ‘Lego’ tablets contained an average dose of 150mg of MDMA – which is double or triple the usual dose found in an ecstasy pill.
The NSW Health Department warned on its website that MDMA is likely to be incompletely mixed meaning dosages are variable.
Poisons Information Centre Clinical Director Andrew Dawson said the consumption of high doses of MDMA had been linked to serious illness and death.
‘It can cause severe agitation and paranoia, raised body temperature, seizures or fits, heart rhythm problems and death,’ he said.
While one tablet alone can be life-threatening, the risk is greatly increased if high doses or multiple tablets are taken, he said in a press release on Saturday.
The drug is more dangerous if taken in combination with alcohol or other stimulants such as methamphetamine or cocaine, Professor Dawson said.
‘Tesla’ ecstasy pills were another recent dangerously high-dose pill containing an average of 130mg of MDMA, the NSW Health Department said
Professor Dawson urged anyone feeling unwell after taking MDMA to call Triple Zero.
‘Importantly, look after your mates. If you feel unwell, or if your friend feels unwell, do something about it. Don’t ignore it. You won’t get into trouble for seeking medical care,’ he said.
Two people were rushed to hospital suffering from drug overdoses at the Wild Horses music festival in country Victoria earlier in December, with police finding one in four cars checked outside the event contained illicit drugs including speed, cannabis, cocaine, mdma, GBH (known as Grievous Bodily Harm), ice, and ketamine.
A 24-year-old man died of a heart attack at the Strawberry Fields Music Festival in November after taking a mixture of MDMA, cocaine and gamma hydroxybutyrate (GHB) – also known as liquid fantasy.
New Year’s Eve in the Park celebration last year. This year the dance party in Victoria Park in Sydney’s inner west will host drug amnesty bins for the first time
Earlier this year an inquest was held into the deaths of six young people who took MDMA at music festivals.
In response to the deaths, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has introduced drug amnesty bins which will be trialed at the New Year’s Eve in the Park festival in Sydney.
The bins allow festival-goers to throw out illegal drugs without penalty.
The amnesty bins have been introduced in part as an alternative to pill testing, which is opposed by the authorities as giving a false sense of security and condoning illicit drug use.
For information on MDMA and its side effects call the NSW Poisons Information Centre on 13 11 26.
For support or information on alcohol and drug-related issues call the 24-hour anonymous Alcohol and Drug Information Service on 1800 250 015.